Danny doesn't have the best spatial awareness, you'd think he would given his bout as a vigilante, but his rogues all had the convenient ability of setting off his ghost sense and letting him know when to turn on his awareness.
So when he was taken in by Bruce Wayne in Gotham, far away from any ghosts or portals, he just didn't have any reason to be on guard. It worked well for him since his vigilante days were over and he could put all his focus on school again.
But you see, when he was first taken in, it was just him and his foster brother Tim staying at the manor.
Fast forward to now, Danny gets home from school to find not only Bruce waiting at the table for dinner, but a kid who looks surprisingly like Bruce??? The kid is small, rude and trying to be threatening in a way Danny doesn't really see as such, like the kid is like 8 how much could they really do???
Turns out a lot.
After Danny and Tim sat down and the introductions were made, Bruce filled them in on the situation that was Damian. Tim seemed to take it as a new puzzle, looking to Damian and Bruce periodically as if he could get answers simply by staring. Danny took it in stride, it isn't that unusually for a rich guy to have secret flings that result in children down the line.
Dinner was in full swing when it happened, there had been some bantering the entire time and many threats of bodily harm coming from Damian which weren't met with as many reprimands as Danny assumed it should. A distinct thunk sound was heard after a particularly harsh threat and Danny looked over to see a knife now embedded in Tim's chair where his head once was.
Before he could react, Bruce was standing with a sharp reprimand and Danny collided harshly with his chair as a new knife embedded itself in his shoulder. He cried out in shock, it has been over a year since his last ghost fight and honestly he forgot how much that hurts!
Aka, Bruce and Dick are forced to take Damian's threats more seriously when the civilian Danny is in the crossfire instead of just the trained vigilante Tim.
Ghost adoption is a sacred thing, because, once accepted by both sides, it can’t be undone. The entities are forever tied together by the infinite realms. It might have started as a joke, but both the phantoms and John slowly started to actually see each other as family. Once it was official, well, ghost adoption is permanent after all. Constantine may not be part ghost or liminal, but he is part demon, and that’s close enough. The DNA and look changes? Simple. Things are a little different since they’re all still alive (well, partially, but still).
But, unintentional bonus points for John. He just tied his soul to the King of the Infinite realms for all eternity and has effectively cheated all of his contracts, however accidentally it may have been. Downside, he can’t make any more new deals, because the demons can sense who he’s connected to now, but, he’s got some really powerful backup now that the ghost children have magic, so he doesn’t really need to make any new contracts anymore.
I made another post about Danny and about how the justice league believes that something exists in the ghost zone then that makes it exist, but I had an idea since then.
So as a joke, John and Danny claim to be related. (Jazz, Dan, and Dani get in on it too.)
Batman: ...you have a family.
John: what? You think you're the only one with kids?
Batman: that *points at Dan* is a grown ass man.
Dan: hey dad, Jazz wants to know if you'll pick up some milk from the store, she says we're out.
John: sure, she want anything else?
Dan: nah but Dani wants you to grab some pizza while you're there.
Batman:....
And at some point, they start coming to him with their problems.
Dan needs a place to stay? Johns couch is free.
Danny needs help with schoolwork? John might not know what the answer is, but he'll try and help.
Jazz needs someone to rant to? She'll call John.
Dani needs help dismantling a cult? John will be right there in an hour.
They don't acknowledge it outloud, but if they have a problem John is the first person they think of to call for help.
The ghost zone and it's inhabitants also accept John as the ghost kids parent, like if they say it's true then it must be true.
Then they start changing just a bit.
Their hair gets lighter (closer to blonde) their eyes change by a couple shades, and unknown to them, their DNA changes.
And they don't really notice it...
Until they start developing magic.
And Jazz nearly kills someone with that magic when her breakfast attacks her.
Danny Fenton is Chip Skylark
Normally, I don't like doing multiple crossovers. I prefer to stick to just DC and DP. That being said, I have always loved the HC that Danny Fenton grows up to be Chip Skylark because it is the same creator and art style, so this is going to be an exception.
Bruce never understood the way people became obsessed with celebrities. He never experienced the whole "crush on the celebrity" or the urge to follow whatever scandal a celebrity was involved in (as long as no crime was committed).
If he liked an actor, it was because their moves and TV shows were good. Their acting had a range of roles that were well done. If he followed a singer or a band, it was because their music was something he enjoyed listening to. If he had a favorite sports player, they were terrific athletes who won competitions.
It was never because he thought them attractive or that he was burning with the need to know who they were dating. He didn't need to see every detail of their lives because he honestly didn't care if this singer was seen buying donuts on a random Saturday with an unknown man or if an athlete was seen buying from a discount bin.
It always made him uncomfortable how fans thought they had a right to a celebrities time. Running up and demanding autographs, taking videos or photos without consent and the worst of all, sending death threats to anyone they believe was stealing thier celebrity away.
He often heard people say that famous people knew what happened when you became famous, but that just sounded like an excuse not to treat another human being like a human being—at least to him.
The whole "they belong to the public now" was just....ugh.
Alfred was the same way. He got excited to meet someone famous from the theater but wasn't one to watch talk shows and sandals. Wasn't one to pin posters to walls or get offended when someone famous acted like a normal person.
Then Dick came to live at the manor, and although it confused him, Bruce let Dick get excited over a celebrity singer. Bought all the posters, signed CDs, met and greets, front row seats, and backstage passes if it made Dick happy.
Jason was the same with Broadway stars, gasping and babbling whenever someone he adored appeared on TV. Tim nearly fainted when he met that one famous skateboarder, framing the used napkin he had the man sign.
Steph adored that one Boxer, constantly babbling fun facts about the man that had nothing to do with boxing. Why would Bruce care what elementary school he went to? But he listened anyway.
Cass had dancers she went star-eyed for. There was that phase where she styled her hair the same way as her idol from Paris Oprea Ballet despite the fact that the style was only during nonperforming hours. Bruce had to special order the endorsed hair bands with a blue star of said Dancer.
Duke had an actor whom he never missed a single moive or show for. Even if the TV show she stared in flop from the terrible writing, the boy forced himself to sit through every minute if only because she appeared. He had a collection of DVDs long before moving in with Bruce and when Bruce took him to a special release night of her latest work, Duke had actually bursted into tears when they played her thank you for watching viedo before the movie started.
Really. Caring so much about people they didn't even know made no sense. He would understand if it was a fictional character, like the Grey Ghost because the character is and was just what that particular media presented. But real people? It was a real head-scratcher.
He assumed Damian would be the same as him. After all, Bruce knew his father, and his father's father had the same view of celebrities.
He was wrong.
"It's Chip Skylar!" His son screams at the top of his lungs when Danny's picture appears on the screen. His old college friend had contacted him asking if it was possible to have some special protection at his next concert.
Apparently, at the last one, he was kidnapped by some crazy fan and held hostage with a kid she babysat.
Seeing as Bruce and Danny often collaborated on tech for Batman (Before Danny got his big singing break, he was one of Gotham U's top engineering majors), Bruce saw no reason not to step in and offer help, especially if it turned out his kidnapping was due to magic, like Danny suspected.
He may not run around as Phantom anymore, but Danny had seen his fair share of magic users and magical creatures. That was the only explanation for how a tree had just appeared in the middle of the road and caused him to crash right in front of her house. She wasn't the cause of the magic, that much he was able to figure out when she chained him up, but it made Danny uneasy.
He was worried that the magic users would try again, and much like Superman, he had little to no defense against it.
"We're going to guard Chip Skylar!? " Damian hyperventilates, practically vibrating in his seat from excitement. "I get to meet Chip Skylar!?"
"You're a fan of his?" Bruce asks, slightly surprised, only to notice the same excitement on his children's faces.
"Ugh, duh. He's only like one of the most talented artists ever!" Steph gasped, pressing her hands over her mouth. "He once stopped to let a black cat, and every animal shelter in the state had their black cats adopted within a week!"
"I started flossing more regularly because of his Shinny Teeth song," Duke admits. "I couldn't get enough of that commercial."
Dick pulled out his phone, tapping rapidly. "I got to tell Wally. He will be so jealous I get to guard Chip Skylark!"
Bruce stared at all of them, wondering how even Jason and Cass seemed to be losing their minds over the same guy he once caught trying to drink three gallons of milk because, and he quotes, "It makes my bones go brrrrrrr"
"Danny is an amazing singer but-"
"Danny?" Tim snaps his eyes towards Bruce so fast, it took every ounce of his training not to flinch."How do you know Chip Skylark's birth name? Only the most dedicated fans know his non-stage name."
Bruce shrugs. "You all know how I feel about famous people. I'm not that dedicated of a fan but I happen to be friends with Danny. I can ask him to met you if you want-"
"YOU PERSONALLY KNOW CHIP SKYLARK, AND YOU DARED TO GIFT ME ART SUPPLIES FOR MY BIRTHDAY!? FATHER HOW COULD YOU!" Damian screeched, slamming his hands on the conference table as his siblings broke into an uproar.
Bruce honestly can never understand this.
Me, writing feverishly:
The JL are convinced Phantom is this Ancient Eldritch Being - everyone aside from Batman. Batman's, like, 99.9 percent sure Danny is an actual teenager because his Dad Senses are tingling and also because Danny says batshit insane stuff that all of Bruce's kids also say.
It comes to a head when Danny's in Gotham, doing a stakeout with Batman, Red Robin, Spoiler, and Signal. It's dead silent and then Danny just starts wheezing and says, "You must...."
Tim, Steph, and Duke snap to attention like sleeper agents.
And then they all say, simultaneously in a terrible Romanian accent and intermittent wheezing:
"Bounce on it... *wheeze*... crazy style."
Batman knows, in that moment, that Danny is 100 percent a child. (His kids have been bastardizing Nosferatu quotes and doing the hand-pointing thing for the last two weeks since watching the damn movie during family night.)
I absolutely need to know what happens after this. Like, hello? How does the Justice League react to this?
Broke college student but also the Ghost King Danny looking at the stack of complaint forms in his inbox about people cheating death. In a stroke of sleep deprived inspiration, he issues a royal decree that anyone who has properly died before (I.e biologically dead, not just clinically dead) is still a citizen of the Infinite Realms, even if they were resurrected. And have to pay income tax to the Crown.
He establishes the Infinite Realms Revenue Service, recruits the ghosts of some meticulous accountants and sends them after all the assholes who think they can escape Death and Taxes. Starting with the worst offenders (ie those who have escaped death the longest/most often). Your tax bracket scales with how many times you died.
Just picture Ra's al-Ghul, in the middle of giving some speech to his assassin cult when this Phil Coulson looking ghost dude shows up behind him to "discuss the back taxes he owes to the Crown".
Every magic user worth their salt is suddenly swamped with messages from panicked villains and heroes who are trying to figure out wtf is going on and how to get out of this. Constantine is sweating bullets.
Danny hires Valerie to do mortal side "casework", because a, she's just as saddled with student debt as he is b, has worked fast food and knows how to handle asshole customers c, doesn't take shit from anybody.
Imagine Vandal Savage, Felix Faust and Red Hood awkwardly sitting in a waiting room with a stack of documents each, ready for their number to be called so they can dispute their claims. Being called in and utterly flummoxed at the unflappable, bored young woman at the desk who somehow has files on everything about you - birth record, death record(s), who you killed and when records... now declare your income as a crime lord/dictator/sorcerer, sir.
Meanwhile Danny is planning on how he can allocate the taxes to open a soup kitchen for Lunch Lady to work at and similar shit. He is determined to be a good king, dammit!
Lois Lane is hunting Danny to get an interview with the King of the afterlife, or whatever it is Phantom does. (Mama wants another Pulitzer for the pile!)
Danny is trying like hell to avoid her, since he's not supposed to just tell people how the afterlife works. (Also, Lois scares him.)
"Hide me!" Phantom shrieked before ducking underneath Batman's cape.
They were barely given a moment to even be surprised before the doors slammed open.
Lois Lane stood proudly in front of the doors, somehow finding a way onto the Justice League watchtowers. She scanned the room with her eyes narrowed like a predator trying to find prey as she grit her teeth and snarled, "Where is he?"
Superman coughed. "Lois! What are you doing here? Actually— how'd you even get here?"
Lois waved him off. "Don't worry about it. Where. Is. He?"
Batman was furiously typing away on his phone, possibly trying to find out how a civilian (admittedly married to a fellow superhero) was able to get into the watchtower, while everyone else shared looks.
"Uhm. Who?" Green Lantern asked awkwardly, exchanging a glance with the Flash.
"He! Phantom! He owes me an interview! Actually, he owed me one 45 minutes ago! I had to chase him from New York to Mexico to Peru and then to here! Where is he?!"
Wonder Woman said rather blandly, "He's not here."
Lois narrowed her eyes. "Are you sure?"
Wonder Woman nodded sagely. "Yes. He darted out of sight using his powers. Perhaps he hoped that you'd waste your time here while he ran off further."
"Dang it! Alright, excuse me, please, I need to search for a certain ghost!" Lois snapped before she strode off like a storm, just as quick as she appeared.
There was silence for a long time.
Then Phantom poked his head out of Batman's cape.
"Thanks for the assist, guys. Also, Batman, did you know that your cape is actually partly a portal?"
"I'm sorry, what—?!"
Walker wouldn't have expected it, but one of the worst parts of being imprisoned by the GIW was watching Phantom suffer through the descending stages of violent obsession failure.
All of them were feeling it, obviously, but for most of them it was a slow decline - the pull of longing, developing over days and weeks into a sharp ache. Ember, ignored and silenced, was lashing out, kicking the glass walls and screaming for attention, even when it hurt. Johnny and Kitty, kept out of each other's sight, pressed against the walls closest together. Walker's whole body throbbed with frustration and self-loathing, needing to return to his territory and drag everyone back with him, away from this place of torture.
But Phantom, not three years dead and with an obsession that demanded that he keep everyone completely unharmed, had declined rapidly. Sure, for the first week or so, he'd been preoccupied with troubles of his own, strapped constantly to a table with hands digging through his insides. But then they'd started to spread out their attention.
At first, Phantom didn't seem to realize what was happening. He cried out in anguish and fear, trying to break open his cell and being punished for it, collapsing under the shock collar's control. Walker could almost see when he figured it out, when he started to clutch at his chest, and scribble constellations onto the walls and floor in his dripping ectoplasm with hands that trembled, trying to ease the pain in his core.
Then he started to curl up and choke on his tears, shuddering in pain whenever screams echoed down the hall. Finally, in between his own turns on the table, he started to shove his hand into his open chest, clutching his burning core directly, moans of pain rising into yells in nearly perfect unison with whoever else was the victim this time.
(Sidney had declined in nearly perfectly unison with Phantom, which a part of Walker hoped the punk hadn't noticed.)
If Phantom wasn't a halfa, he probably would've shattered into dust by now. It probably would've been a mercy.
When the yelling started, Walker almost didn't notice. Phantom, delirious with pain, for sure didn't. But before long, most of the rest of them had stirred to alertness, dragging themselves closer to the glass to peer down the hall. A troop of GIW stormed down the hall without glancing at any of them, and an alarm started going off. Phantom whined and rolled over, his hand buried in his autopsy wound while he shivered. (The scientists had tried stitching it closed, but Phantom just clawed it blindly open.)
"What's happening?" the Lunch Lady croaked. (Youngblood and Phantom were starving, and it was doing her no favors.)
"Prison break," Walker rasped. He recognized the signs. "Someone's here." He'd never imagined that it would be a relief.
Help, this is way funnier than it should be-
While trying to figure out how the ghost transformation works, for half-ghosts...
Hey, probably the "sparkle" from where the luminous circles come is where the core of a ghost is situated! Halfa's powers come from there!
*checking the first transformation scene from Vlad*
The core is stored in... the core is... ??? Okay, nice. Good to know.
Batman was sneaking around the Riddler's hidden base for the sixth time this week. The riddler has been quiet for 1 year straight, and his paranoia believes he is up to something big.
Scarecrow doesn't know where he has been. He has been missing out on the monthly meeting since February last year.
There was only one odd clue he found so far, and it was an almost burnt up letter with the word millberry st- in the fireplace.
It took Tim a total of 2 weeks and 4 days fueled by the dangerous coffee, monster energy, and redbull mixed concoction that Bruce willing made to find which exact street that was in Gotham city.
Batman roam the night on Millberry Street 3190 in the middle class of Gotham city, where he spot Riddler, not in his usual green question outfit, but casual clothes and a hat to cover his red hair, holding a sleeping toddler in one arm, a baby girl and boy in a double baby sling on.
Speaking to a 14 year old girl with red hair just like him, with a bundles of groceries on thr floor leading into the apartment door.
A black teen with a beanie along with a goth teen picking up bags of groceries. If it weren't for the interference in his spy com in this area, Batman would've been able to hear what they were saying.
I love in DPxDC crossovers when Danny/ghosts are enthusiastic about Damian because he comes across as a baby ghost and they think his aggression is cute attempts to initiate play fighting.
But now I want to see fics where the whole batfam (or most) is liminal/ghostly, and due to his life-long exposure to the puts/Gotham’s ambient exoplasm, Damian is actually the oldest ghost in the batfam. Realms beings telling Batman to be quiet, adults are talking, and then turning to Robin for his opinion.